Trade Intensity Research Articles

An Analysis of India's Revealed Comparative Advantage in Merchandise Trade with Australia

India's export sector has considerably improved since 1991 economic and trade reforms. It has gained momentum after the signing of various trade agreements with several countries. India and Australia started free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations over a decade ago in 2011 and finally concluded a landmark Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) on 2nd April 2022. This study examines India's trade relations with Australia using the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) index and trade intensity index (TII) for exports and imports, to determine the patterns of exports and areas of specialisation of the two countries. The findings suggest that the bilateral trade between India and Australia has not strengthened. However, India enjoys a comparative advantage in several product groups, which fall into the category of primary goods, low-technology manufacturers, and manufactured goods as well. Overall, the RCA is much higher for India's exports than that for Australia's exports to India. The study finds that India has trade potential in several product groups with Australia and efforts should be made to bring greater benefits from the trade agreement for both countries in the years to come.

Bilateral Trade Between India and Bangladesh: A Pre- and Post-SAFTA Period Analysis

India and Bangladesh, the two neighbouring economies of South Asia, are at the centre of attraction in the foreign trade literature. The present article analyses the pattern of trade between India and Bangladesh before and after joining the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA). The study covers twenty-five years, from 1996 to 2020 and used indices, namely, the Index of Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA)Index, Trade Intensity Index (TII) and Trade Complementarity Index (TCI), to analyses the bilateral trade. Although Bangladesh has a relative comparative advantage in some of the products, India has a maximum comparative advantage in relatively more product groups. The index value of the TII is more than one for both countries during the study period, which means that the bilateral trade flows are highly intensive compared to their trading partner of the rest of the world. Furthermore, at the bilateral level, the index value of trade complementarity reflects a partial match between each country’s export supply and import demand because the value of indices stays between 0 and 100 during the entire study period. It also reflects that India’s export complementarity with Bangladesh is reciprocating, indicating growing trade demand for Indian product in Bangladesh’s market and India’s export supply becomes more compatible to meet imports demand of Bangladesh. India and Bangladesh have huge potential for bilateral trade, because they belong to Indian subcontinent, have geographical proximity, abundant natural resources and pursed similar policies towards achieving economic development. Neighbouring Countries, Bilateral Trade, Trade Intensity, Index of Revealed Comparative Advantage, Trade Complementarity, Trade Pattern, Exports, Imports JEL Classification: F10, F13, F14, F47

Trade damper effect of regional trade agreements

The authors explore the impact of crises on the dynamics of trade between partners within regional trade agreements (RTAs) with the aim to determine whether RTAs have a stabilizing effect on foreign trade. RTAs have become one of the main instruments of trade policy in recent decades. It is generally recognized that RTAs do stimulate trade at the time of stability and growth. It is logical to assume that meeting commitments between RTA partners should lead to the preservation of trade flows between them in the event of a crisis. However, this statement requires empirical confirmation. The study examines the effects of RTA networks for the three most active RTAs’ participants located on different continents — the EU, Chile and the Republic of Korea. The analysis of dynamics of these countries trade flows indicates a clear trend of strengthening trade interaction between RTA partners during crisis periods. The focus of the methodology of the study lies in computations of three trade indices: export significance index, trade intensity index and symmetric trade introversion index. They were calculated for the totality of trade partners for the EU, Chile and the Republic of Korea from 2005 to 2020 in order to identify the dominant tendencies of trade flows during periods of economic shocks of recent decades (the financial crisis of 2008—2009 and the crisis caused by the pandemic of 2019—2021). The authors come to the conclusion that for the studied countries and the EU RTAs act as a damper that reduces the negative impact of crises on foreign trade. Trade between RTA countries at the time of a crisis either decreased to a lesser extent compared to trade between countries that do not have RTA, or recovered faster. This empirically confirms yet another significant importance of RTAs. The authors suggest to make similar calculations for other countries and RTAs to support the revealed pattern.

From Economics to Earnings: A Macro-Based Equity Earnings Growth Forecasting Model

Earnings growth measures the change in a company’s reported net income through time. It is arguably the most widely observed measure of the growth and the profitability of a business, and a critical driver of equity returns. Though many practitioners have relied on historical averages to inform earnings growth expectations, research has found a relationship between earnings growth and prevailing economic growth. Building on prior research that connects earnings growth with real GDP growth, the authors split the earnings growth into two parts—revenue growth and changes in profit margins—and identifies multiple macroeconomic factors that have historical relationships separately with each. The authors find that revenue growth can historically be explained by world GDP growth, US GDP growth and payout ratios, and changes in profit margins can be explained by labor costs trade intensity. Upon conducting the out of sample test, this article offers a robust solution on predicting future earnings growth with macroeconomic factors and provides an important framework for understanding a key component of equity returns.

ЄВРО-СЕРЕДЗЕМНОМОРСЬКЕ ПАРТНЕРСТВО: ФОРМУВАННЯ ТА ДИНАМІКА ТРАНСФОРМАЦІЙ У КОНТЕКСТІ СУСПІЛЬНО-ПОЛІТИЧНИХ, ЕНЕРГЕТИЧНИХ ТА ЕКОНОМІЧНИХ ВИКЛИКІВ

The article is devoted to the current problem of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership in the context of sociopolitical, energy and economic challenges. The implementation of the Mediterranean vector of foreign policy by the European Union dates back to the 1950s. However, the policy of partnership was actualized only in the 21st century, which is determined by historical, geopolitical, economic, energy and socio-cultural factors. The article describes four stages of the formation and development of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership, defines the vectors, directions, features, forms and mechanisms of cooperation and cooperation. The dynamics of transformations of partnership and interaction strategies between the EU and the Mediterranean states are analyzed. Considerable attention is focused on the study of the impact of modern socio-political, economic, energy factors and historical events on the effectiveness of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership. Special attention is focused on the problems of illegal migration to the EU from the conflict zones of North Africa and the Middle East. The settlement of migration problems is considered as an actual vector and dimension of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership. In the context of modern regional and global challenges, the dynamics of the transformation of the Mediterranean vector of the European Union's foreign policy have been studied. The article indicates the positive dynamics of interstate interactions. The directions, features, vectors of the foreign policy strategies of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership (liberalization and intensification of trade; creation of a free trade zone between the EU and the countries of North Africa and the Middle East; implementation of investment projects; introduction of innovative technologies, standards; active cooperation and interaction in the energy sector) were comprehensively studied. formation of the regional energy security system). The priority directions of the partnership between the EU and the Mediterranean countries are the implementation of projects on the use of solar energy, the introduction of alternative energy sources, and the settlement of environmental and energy problems. In the context of modern security geopolitical challenges, the goals of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership are to ensure peace and security; settlement of acute crises and conflicts; democratization of the political systems of the Mediterranean countries; fight against terrorism and illegal migration.

ՀՀ արտաքին առևտրի առկա վիճակը․ արտահանման և ներմուծման ինտենսիվություն

The purpose of this article is to conduct a comprehensive analysis of Armenian foreign trade on the main trends of exports, imports, trade turnover, exported and imported partner countries, and major commodity groups. In addition, the article calculated the Armenian export and import intensity index with several partner countries. The task of the work is to identify the main trends in Armenian foreign trade and assess the opportunities and potential for trade development. In this context, through a comparative analysis of comparable historical series, the author presented the trade processes recorded in Armenia during the years under review, identifying the main trends and directions. The research results show that the Armenian foreign trade processes have limited diversification both by the exported and imported group of partner countries and by commodity groups. On the other hand, due to the foreign trade intensity index, a number of unrealized opportunities have been identified among the EAEU member states (with the exception of Russia) and with China and European countries. In this context, the unrealized trade opportunities and their realization will directly affect both the Republic of Armenia's foreign trade and the economy's development as a whole. Thus, a comprehensive analysis of the Armenian foreign trade and an assessment of the intensity of exports and imports give reason to believe that we continue to fix diversification problems in individual commodity groups and foreign trade countries. In addition, the intensity of Armenia's foreign trade, due to various objective reasons, continues to be concentrated around several countries. All above-mentioned create problems in developing local production and increasing international competitiveness.

Five Stylized Facts on Belt and Road Countries and Their Trade Patterns

AbstractThe Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) offers investment opportunities for several Eurasian countries but not all of them attract investments in the same way. This paper investigates the geographical distribution of BRI projects completed between 2013 and 2020. The analysis shows that pre‐existing trade patterns are related to the likelihood of a country receiving completed BRI projects. We single out and provide evidence in support of five stylized facts. First, BRI countries with completed projects tend to be poorer and larger. Second, projects are more likely to occur in countries with intense intermediate trade with China. Third, the countries that received projects have more diversified export structures and their sectoral specialization overlaps with that of China. Fourth, among middle‐high‐income countries, the allocation of projects tends to favor those with high levels of intra‐industry trade. Fifth, among BRI countries with projects, the complexity or sophistication of the goods traded increases faster with income. These findings suggest that fostering trade integration has direct benefits and may also contribute to further BRI investments.

Сравнительная интенсивность торговли Дальнего Востока России: отраслевой аспект

The article analyzes the dynamics of the comparative intensity of trade in the Russian Far East within the «new» territorial borders. This analysis was carried out on the basis of decomposition estimates of trade within the economic sectors of the Far East in 2012–2021. The dominance of the external market (foreign countries and other regions of Russia) in the total trade turnover of the Far East has been revealed. It is shown that in the Far East the process of trade «consolidation» between regions continued. The product groups that form the basis of trade within the Far East have been identified: food industry products, mineral products, metals, wood and other goods consisting of construction materials. It is shown that due to the incoming trade flows of mineral products, engineering products, food products, metals and chemical industry products into the macroregion, the Far Eastern market was closely «linked» to the market of other regions of Russia. The macroregion’s trade turnover with foreign countries was based on massive exports of raw materials and imports of various products, allowing for the generation of positive effects for the Far Eastern economy based on its existing comparative advantages. Using the obtained estimates of the localization index, it was discovered that trade in the internal market of the Far East remains high. However, this intensity tended to weaken, indicating a shift in the intensity of the Far Eastern trade from internal market to external market. It was found that high trade intensity within the Far East was generated by trade interactions only in some economic sectors: food products; mineral products; chemical industry products; wood; metals; other goods; leather raw materials and furs. It was revealed that high values of trade intensity between the Far Eastern regions were supported only by the exchange of food products, metals, as well as raw hides and furs. The main source of the decrease in the intensity of trade between the Far Eastern regions has been discovered – a reduction in the exchange of mineral products

An analysis of intra-SAARC trade relations

The world is composed of geographical regions comprising clusters of countries having physical contiguity. This premise motivated South Asian countries to form SAARC in 1985. SAARC envisioned enhancing trade and commerce among the member states. In 1993, they initiated SAPTA to liberalise tariff barriers and created SAFTA in 2004 to make South Asia a trading zone. Despite these initiatives, many pitfalls and hiccups did not allow SAPTA and SAFTA to bloom. This paper attempts to empirically examine intra-regional trade among SAARC countries through their bilateral trade intensity index, intra-regional trade intensity index and intra-regional trade share. The study found that most SAARC countries have their trade priorities outside the region. Their intra-regional trade stands at just 5.8%. To reduce this economic disconnect, SAARC countries need to come forward to enhance cross border trade, for which an open and more inclusive trading system and political will is required.

The Corelation of Pandemic and Indonesia Presidency of G20 in The Capital Market G20 Member Countries

The correlation between the capital market of G20 member countries is important to analyze.Depending on a country’s economy, capital market integration may have different effects. A more intensebilateral relationship (trade intensity) can significantly affect the movement of capital market sharesbetween countries. The current research used the Multivariate GARCH Model/DCC-GARCH method. Thecondition of capital market integration before the Indonesian G20 Presidency showed that Indonesia(JKSE) had the strongest integration with Australia (ASX) (0.563814) and South Korea (KOSPI) (0.542470).After the G20 presidency, Indonesia (JKSE) had the strongest capital market integration with India (NSE)(0.507229) and the USA (NYSE). It was also found that China (SSE) had an integration with South Korea(KOSPI), while Germany (DAX) and Australia (ASX) had an integration with the UK (FTSE100). Theconclusion is that the higher autocorrelation, the higher the effect of the volatility of stock marketmovements in the two countries involved. Furthermore, capital market integration can be influenced bygeospatial and economic relations.

Enhancing Livestock Productivity in the Desert Ecologies of Pakistan: Setting the Development Priorities.

Livestock is now sharing by more than 53 percent of total agricultural value added in Pakistan. Identifying and developing the potential areas of livestock production is part of the overall development strategy for this sector while rural poverty alleviation is a major concern of Pakistan’s overall development policy. Our major livestock production systems are grazing, stall-fed and grazing-cum-stall-fed based. Grazing based livestock farming is economical and customary system in mountainous, rainfed, deserts and salinity affected areas. The livestock herders of desert areas deserve special attention of the policy-makers because of their most deprived living conditions as majority is living below poverty line by all poverty measuring standards. The present study is aimed to generate an updated synthesis based on empirical knowledge about status of livestock farming in desert ecologies of Pakistan. The results show that the average herd sizes maintained by the herders is fairly large to cover losses due to drought, disease and other epidemics. The human and physical capital endowments of the farmers are generally poor. Other common characteristics are: major dependence on natural vegetation with limited supply of fodder, more physical exertion of animals during grazing, poor animal health, practicing natural method of breeding, low milk and meat productivity, highly limited livestock and milk marketing opportunities, etc. The stall feeding is mainly composed of dry stalks and straws of different crops along with a small quantity of food grains. On marketing side, because of location and lack of infrastructure support, milk marketing opportunities are meager, therefore, it is converted into desi ghee—a value added and preserved form which is sold in nearby town markets. In marketing of live animals, the farmers are always exploited by beoparies. On average herd size, the net monthly income in Cholistan desert from cattle (for milk), sheep and goats farming (for meat purpose) was Rs 10128, Rs 990 and Rs 508, respectively; for Thal desert the corresponding estimates were Rs 457, Rs 359 and Rs 552, respectively; and for Tharparkar, the corresponding estimates are Rs 918, Rs 3221 and Rs 331, respectively. There is a strong need of prioritising development efforts for desert ecologies. High priority areas include efforts for increasing availability of rangeland vegetation and green fodder, improvement in the genetic potential of local livestock breeds, provision of more efficient livestock health coverage, and establishment of milk collection centres of milk processing plants. The low priority areas include designing regulatory framework for milk and livestock marketing, programs for human capacity building, facilitating through institutional credit, and different incentives for the veterinary staff posted in such areas. JEL classification: Q130, Q190, Q200 Keywords: Desert, Tharparkar, Thal, Cholistan, Livestock Farming, Livestock Feeding Patterns, Feed Composition, Livestock Trade Intensity, Priority Setting.

ГРАВІТАЦІЙНА МОДЕЛЬ МІЖНАРОДНОЇ ТОРГІВЛІ: ВИТОКИ І СУЧАСНІ ПІДХОДИ

The article examines the historical origins of the formation of gravity modeling and its use in the study of the intensity of international trade. It is emphasized that the driving forces of international exchange and the search for optimal policy ways of its implementation are based on classical theories of international trade. They are based on a liberal approach to deny the need for state restrictions on the free flow of goods between countries in order to regulate the volume, structure and directions of the country's foreign trade. The contribution of outstanding economists to the development of the theoretical and methodological foundations of the construction of gravity models of international exchange is considered. The features of their application for empirical research in the field of international trade are characterized. Factors affecting international trade flows are identified. An analysis of theoretical and methodological approaches to the formation of an effective gravity model of foreign trade was carried out based on the search for factors that influence it and contribute to the intensification of international trade flows between partner countries. The specificity of the involvement of new additional variables in gravity models is shown. It is emphasized that the bifurcation processes taking place in the modern globalized world form new conditions of international exchange. Attention is focused on the fact that such a situation necessitates the further development of theoretical and methodological bases for forecasting the volume of international trade based on the identification of cause-and-effect dependencies and spatio-temporal relationships. The conducted review of the history of gravity modeling, its use in studies of the international trade intensity, the contribution of prominent economists to the deepening of the theoretical and methodological foundations of the of international exchange gravity models construction showed quite wide opportunities for their further improvement based on taking into account the factors that influence the volume of bilateral trade. It was investigated that the problems are: 1) Selection of variables of the gravity model from the side of export and import for its adaptation to modern conditions of the world trade. The bifurcation processes taking place in the modern globalized world form new conditions of international exchange. 2) Gravitational models are empirical models built on liberal and neoliberal theories of international economic relations. In the conditions of globalization, a high level of interaction and interdependence of countries, the intensification of international trade flows, the movement of resources from a weaker trading partner to rich and powerful states means the flow of resources from underdeveloped and poor countries to stronger and richer ones. Gravitational models of international trade are a reflection and improvement of this process.

Examining the Patterns and Dynamics of Intra-Regional Trade and Revealed Comparative Advantage in the East African Community

Abstract This paper investigates intra-regional trade changes in the East African Community since its revival, as well as their revealed comparative advantage and evolution between 2001 and 2020. While most studies have examined the comparative advantage of individual EAC countries, they have not addressed how the revival of the Community impacted comparative advantage and intra-regional trade over time. As its analytical approach, the study calculates trade intensity indicators, revealed comparative advantage indices, and evaluates product categories that have lost, retained, or gained comparative advantage. The following conclusions are drawn from the study’s findings: first, the revival of the Community increased intra-regional trade at first, but it soon dwindled due to non-tariff barriers. Second, product groups exported in raw form retained their comparative advantage, with Uganda having the most such product groups. Third, comparative advantage evolved, with Kenya having the greatest number of product groups gaining comparative advantage. Three policy implications emerge: first, restoring intra-regional trade to immediate post-Community levels requires significant reductions in trade barriers. Second, increasing export revenues necessitates the addition of value to agricultural products. Third, due to the dynamic nature of comparative advantage, countries must tailor policy support to product groups that lose comparative advantage.

Key Features and Challenges of the China-Western Balkan Countries Merchandise Trade Development

The economic growth and development of the Western Balkan largely depend on the integration of national economies into international trade flows. Bearing in mind the expanding presence of China in the Western Balkan countries and the considerable increase in bilateral trade over the previous decade, it is of great importance to focus on the strategies for overcoming main challenges and fostering more balanced trade in the forthcoming period. Regarding that, the main aim of the research was to analyze trade flows and patterns and investigate the trade intensity between the Western Balkan countries and China. Furthermore, the research attempted to determine the main challenges and to consider the strategic approach to their overwhelming, including better exploiting the opportunities provided by trade cooperation with China in the rapidly changing global environment.
 The paper used desk research - a descriptive analysis of data on merchandise trade between six Western Balkans countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, North Macedonia, and Serbia) and China. The analysis was based on the data available in the UN Comtrade and Trade Map statistical databases for the period 2016-2021. In addition, the Trade intensity index (TTI) was also used in the paper in order to discover how intensively the Western Balkan countries were trading with China.
 However, despite the rapid trade growth with China, its share in the WB countries' total trade remains at a relatively low level of about 7%. The trade deficit also increased significantly, indicating a deepening of the asymmetry in the economic relations of the observed countries. Although the trade intensity index (TII) confirms the deepening of trade relations, the TII value of 0.24 in 2021 indicates that trade between the Western Balkans and China is still under-represented and there is considerable room for improvement.

AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVES, THE CURRENT STATE OF INDONESIA IN THE GLOBALIZATION ERA

Abstract: Countries must be able to compete due to the high global intensity of trade and agreements. As a first step in dealing with this, many countries employ economic concepts that are tailored to their specific circumstances. The goal of this research is to look at the role of Islamic economics in dealing with the onslaught of economic globalization, such as China's Belt Road Initiative (BRI), and multi-sectoral institutions like the IMF and the World Bank. The literature research approach used in this paper is qualitative using literature review method. The results of this study found that the Indonesian government was in the midst of a powerful wave that required strong captains and ships. In other words, the existence of BRI, IMF and World Bank will be a threat if they are not controlled properly. As a result, the government has to divert this funding to productive areas such as agriculture. Furthermore, given China's concentration on Islamic banking, Indonesia may be able to persuade China to involve the Indonesian people in developing its products. Furthermore, the Indonesian government must be able to read every step taken by BRI, IMF, and World Bank so as not to be trapped in debt investment.
 Keywords: Islamic economic, belt road initiative, IMF, worldbank

A non-parametric assessment of the effects of the Euro on GVC trade

This work makes a fresh contribution to the long-standing debate on the trade effects of the euro. Its novelty lies in the joint use of trade in value added and non-parametric techniques. Specifically: i) we measure bilateral trade in value added to proxy backward and forward global value chain (GVC) linkages within the eurozone; ii) we compare these outcomes for treated and untreated units by disentangling long-term and short-term effects of the euro, taking advantage of panel data and combining matching and difference-in-difference approaches. Results show no robust evidence of a positive post-assessment of the euro effect on intra-eurozone GVC trade. These findings are robust to a set of sensitivity tests such as looking both at the intensity and composition of trade in value added flows and extending the sample to various control groups and datasets. We believe that our findings contribute to the long-standing debate on the euro by complementing the previous empirical evidence and providing an overall coherent and informative picture for policymaking.

The Trade Growth under the EU–SADC Economic Partnership Agreement: An Empirical Assessment

The objective of this paper is an ex-post evaluation of the European Union–Southern African Development Community Economic Partnership Agreement (EU–SADC EPA) stemming from changes in trade flows from the six members of the SADC (Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, and South Africa) to the European Union (EU). The analysis uses detailed import and tariff data at the Harmonized System 6-digit level (HS-6) and provides estimates of the changes in the intensive and extensive margins of trade resulting from tariff reductions, as a consequence of the EU–SADC EPA initiative. The impact on the intensity of trade is estimated using a Difference-in-Differences (DID) estimation, controlling for both country and product-level trade flows. The impact on the trade of new goods (the extensive margin) before and after the agreement is evaluated through a probit analysis. The results show that the EU–SADC EPA has a positive impact on the EU’s imports from the six members of the SADC, even if significant differences emerge among sectors and countries.

Peculiarities of the economic assessment of the development of the export potential of agricultural enterprises

The analysis of existing theoretical approaches shows that the problem of clarifying the essence and features of the formation of the export potential of agricultural enterprises remains insufficiently resolved, which significantly inhibits the development of methodological principles for their comprehensive assessment and management mechanisms for increasing international competitiveness on foreign markets. We consider the category "export potential" as a business process, which is divided into main stages (formation, development, management) and includes a sequence of certain stages (planning, regulation, organization, motivation, control). The novelty of the proposal lies in the assessment of the export potential of agricultural enterprises by calculating the system of indicators both at the level of individual economic entities of the agro-industrial complex (direct method) and with the help of national specialized and state bodies (indirect method) in compliance with important methodological principles. We suggest using the trade intensity index, which allows you to determine whether the value of trade between two countries is greater or less than one would expect. The trade complementarity index can provide useful information on the prospects for intra-regional trade. It indicates to what extent the counterparty's export profile matches or complements the partner's import profile. The economic evaluation of the export potential of agricultural enterprises allows to ensure the stable and effective functioning of economic entities in the structure of global economic relations and to determine the priorities of their development. The practical application of this methodology will allow to obtain a reliable assessment of the current situation in a specific sales market, to identify trends, problems and priorities of its development, as well as potential and competitive opportunities of the organization from the exit of agricultural enterprises to this agro-food segment. Taking into account the specificity of the subject of research, we suggest to evaluate the export potential of agricultural enterprises to use an integral methodology that allows to more accurately reflect the capabilities of the enterprise on the foreign market, with the help of indicators that are weighted in a certain way. In addition to the integral methodology for the purpose of assessing the export potential, we have proposed a method of export diagnostics of agricultural enterprises, which consists in evaluating the main functions of the enterprise, which determine its readiness for export activity. The advantage of the developed methodology is the availability of the information necessary for analysis, the simplicity of calculations, it more clearly and accurately reflects the level of export potential of a company that has been present on the foreign market for a long time, as it takes into account the opinion of third-party experts and the influence of internal and external factors. The main advantage of the developed technique is visual optimization. Data obtained as a result of the analysis of the complex methodology, which is much easier to perceive by the user.

Impact of Regional integration on Trade and Economic Cooperation – a key study of Georgia and Azerbaijan

The South Caucasus is a unique small and densely populated region in the southern part of the Caucasus. It consists of three independent states - Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia. Georgia is actively engaged in the Peaceful Neighborhood Initiative in the South Caucasus and strives to deepen political and economic relations with the countries in the region based on sovereign interests. In these processes, strengthening mutually beneficial, trust-based cooperation with the Republic of Azerbaijan is of special interest to Georgia. After the collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and the regaining of independence by Georgia and Azerbaijan, a completely new phase of diplomatic relations began between the two countries which grew into a strategic partnership. Territorial proximity and the establishment of diplomatic relations have prompted the dynamic development of trade and economic relations between the two countries, which increases the degree of urgency of the study. The presented paper focuses on the priority areas of trade and economic cooperation between Georgia and Azerbaijan. However, at the present stage economics and politics are so closely interrelated that it is impossible to draw a line between them. Therefore, in order to achieve the purpose of the paper, the first chapter focuses on the development of diplomatic relations between the two countries, while the following chapters study trade and economic cooperation between Georgia and Azerbaijan and analyze the development of bilateral cooperation in trade in services; in addition, the trade intensity index is calculated; the importance of investments from Azerbaijan in the Georgian economy is assessed; the transnational energy and transport projects proposed by the Georgian and Azerbaijani governments are discussed; and the growing role of Georgia as trade and transport hub in the Caucasus in both the offshore and onshore components of these projects is assessed. It is noted that trade and economic relations have growing dynamics and show readiness to further develop cooperation. In addition, some suggestions that will be helpful for Georgia to increase the scale of cooperation with Azerbaijan and assist deepening the involvement of the two countries in the world integration processes are proposed. We believe that the paper will enhance further research and discussion on trade and economic cooperation between Georgia and Azerbaijan and, most importantly, ensure support for this kind of cooperation.

Origins and Distribution of Hellenistic and Late Republican Transport Amphorae in the Dalmatian Region and its Implications for Adriatic Trade and Economy

The presence of Hellenistic and Late Republican transport amphorae at numerous sites along the Adriatic and within shipwrecks off the coast indicates that intense trade and/or exchange in commodities such as olive oil and wine took place in this region from the fourth until the first century BC. The details of this commercial activity are nevertheless unclear in terms of the sources, destinations, and routes via which transport containers and their contents were circulated. The present study brings compositional data to bear on this topic by analysing petrographically and geochemically 248 amphorae sherds from 15 sites along the Dalmatian coast of present-day Croatia, including production sites, places of consumption, and shipwrecks. This revealed the existence of several larger amphora workshops whose amphorae were used to export goods to Dalmatia during the fourth and third centuries BC. They were involved in direct trade or through intermediaries in the redistribution centres. In the second and first centuries BC, only one workshop supplied amphorae in the region, which is probably the Dalmatian town of Issa. Aspects of the regional and inter-regional distribution and redistribution of amphorae from these workshops have been reconstructed, as well as changes within the trading system over time.